By Joey Johnston
Visit Tampa Bay — the agency that promotes, markets, and advertises the resources that help the area generate more than $6-billion annually in tourism spending — has become a sponsor of the Tampa Bay Soccer Hall of Fame, which inducts its inaugural class on Aug. 14.
Santiago Corrada, president and chief executive officer of Visit Tampa Bay, said it’s a natural partnership.
“We are delighted to continue our strong bonds with Tampa Bay sports,’’ Corrada said. “From Super Bowls to Stanley Cups to the recent Tampa Bay Sun championships and our sponsorship of two European teams, we love soccer. And it’s the 50th anniversary of the Tampa Bay Rowdies. So it’s a great time to launch the Tampa Bay Soccer Hall of Fame.’’
Farrukh Quraishi, a TBSHOF board of directors member, played for the Rowdies when the franchise debuted in 1975. He witnessed the growth of Tampa Bay’s sports scene, which mirrored the area’s high-profile expansion in all areas.
“We are honoring the history and heritage of soccer in the Tampa Bay area, and that is a big part of our area’s growth,’’ Quraishi said. “Visit Tampa Bay helps to promote and sustain that growth, which has been great for all of us. We couldn’t be happier to have them aboard as a sponsor.’’
The TBSHOF’s inaugural 11-person induction class includes six household-name pioneers from the Rowdies’ glorious era in the North American Soccer League, three legendary head coaches, a longtime referee, and a journalist who helped to promote the game at an unprecedented level.
Rowdies icons Mike Connell, Derek Smethurst, and Steve Wegerle will be inducted, along with Coach Eddie Firmani, team executive Francisco Marcos, and team owner George Strawbridge.
Other inductees include Coach Jay Miller, who spearheaded the University of Tampa’s 1981 NCAA Division II national-championship team; Coach Jim DiNobile, who guided two national-championship youth teams and Eckerd College’s program; Coach Vicky King, a state champion and four-decade active leader of the Land O’Lakes High School girls program; Mike Mekelburg, a U.S. Soccer National Assignor and former referee; and Jim Henderson, a longtime journalist who began a versatile career in soccer by covering the colorful exploits of the early Rowdies as the Tampa Tribune’s beat writer.
The ceremony and dinner will be held at Higgins Hall, 5225 N. Himes Ave., on the campus of Tampa’s St. Lawrence Catholic Church on Thursday, Aug. 14, 5:30p.m. to 9 p.m.
The event is open to the public. Individual tickets are $90. Tables of eight are available for $1,000 which include prime location, table signage, and program/video recognition. Additionally, there’s a chance to join the organization’s ground floor through a membership in the Founders Club for $250 annually for six years, or a flat rate of $1,500 for a lifetime membership. For more information, call (813) 467-6916 or log onto TampaBaySoccerHallOfFame.org.
